DANGER DIVA is Weird, Fun, and Worth the Ride

Danger Diva is the latest film from weirdo cult film director Robert McGinley. While his following is small, a Google search yields proof that his fans are fervent and steadfast. This latest one certainly lives up to McGinley’s reputation for being fun and bizarre.

A rock n’ roll musical, Danger Diva‘s first two acts aren’t wholly compelling aside from the great tunes. The music is fantastic, but the plot sturggles and the film’s quality is a bit sub-par. That is… until the third act. The off the rails final act really pays off; it makes the previous seemingly mediocre portions of the film suddenly tie together and work. In fact, a rewatch really helps put it all in context, with the batshit third act as an insane roadmap.

Here’s the low down on the plot:

In Danger Diva, audiences are taken on a dystopean journey into the near future with hard rock singer Devi Danger (played by Molly Sides) as she is coerced into becoming an electronically enhanced new-music diva. Her singing voice is used to control and energize the brains of indoctrinated employees (also known as “Brain Cattle”) that are being used as external processors for the advancement of corporate high tech clients. Operating in a digital sweatshop, these “Brain Cattle” process binary algorithms that serve as a chorus for Devi Danger.

Sides, as Danger, is fantastic. The cast is all pretty solid, but she certainly stands out. As noted earlier, the musical numbers are fantastic, as well. The weird sci-fi plotline and the way it all goes down in the end act as a vehicle for a film that – at it’s core – is truly about the DIY ethic and the spirit of independent music.

All said and done, the most appropriate word for describing this one is “fun”. It’s simply a fun movie. And, sometimes all you really want in a film is a fun experience. Molly Sides (of the band Thunderpussy, whose music I will be checking out more in the very near future) is fantastic and the film is one hell of a ride. By the end of this one, it’s hard not have a great time watching this one.

Justin has been running websites since his first Geocities site in 1994, but only did he ever start covering anything of substance years later. After he stopped regularly running local concerts in Northern NJ and the greater Philly area, he knew he needed to step up his writing game if he expected to continue to get free music to listen to. He writes regularly here, at Cinapse, and at Rock on Philly... as well as on occasion at Cinepunx. He previously wrote for several other sites, but he forgets some of them and others no longer exist. He likes music, film, the Philadelphia Eagles, talking about Criminal Justice, reading Intelligence Report, and his family... not in that order. His beautiful wife is far more talented than he is and his kids far more adorable... and crazy.